New market bulletin- Navigating tariff challenges: Insights from display, home audio, and broadcast sectors

Futuresource Consulting is delighted to announce the publication of its latest complementary bulletin, "Tariff Reflections on the Road," a series of thought leadership articles and video reports which capture the pulse of the display, home audio, and broadcast industry following the teams’ trip to China, Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and the USA.

Navigating the complexities of ‘Country of Origin’

In the ever-evolving landscape of global trade, the concept of "Country of Origin" (COO) has been propelled into the limelight in recent global trade negotiations due to its significant impact on tariffs, regulatory compliance, and supply chain strategies.

"Having recently navigated this complex process with the support of outside counsel for Christie, successfully labelling a product as ‘made in Canada’, I can attest to the competitive advantages that can be gained," commented Ted Romanowitz, Principal Consultant, Futuresource Consulting.

This article explores the competitive advantages based on factory locations, with lower tariff rates for factories in Mexico and Canada compared to those in the USA. It also discusses the impact of tariffs on parts and subcomponents, and the strategic decisions involved in sourcing components and transforming products.

Insights from China, Hong Kong, and Korea

Guy Hammett, Head of Home Audio at Futuresource, also shares his experiences from a two-and-a-half-week trip across China, Hong Kong, and Korea. During this journey, he met with clients, spoke at events, and discussed the latest trends in the audio industry, with a particular focus on tariffs.

"The uncertainty in American policy, which changes frequently, has led to a consensus that the trade landscape has shifted for the medium term. In the audio industry, economic challenges typically see consumers still purchasing new speakers and soundbars but opting for lower quality models due to rising prices," commented Hammett.

Hammett delves into the economic challenges and changes in consumer behaviour, the importance of dual sourcing, and maintaining a diverse supply chain to mitigate the impact of tariffs.

Navigating the tariff landscape at NAB show 2025

Simon Forrest, Principal Technology Consultant, shares his insights from the NAB Show 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Throughout the show, the complexity and uncertainty surrounding tariffs were major talking points.

"With potential tariffs reaching up to 40%, the impact on hardware-based sectors is expected to be substantial."

This article discusses the substantial impact on hardware-based sectors, the relative safety of the software and services sector amidst tariff turmoil, and creative solutions to tariff challenges. Forrest also shares an innovative strategy where manufacturers used dial-up modems to reclassify their products as telecommunications equipment, thereby reducing tariffs.

Countries covered

The report includes reflections and insights from key countries such as China, Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Mexico, Canada, and the USA. It provides a comprehensive overview of how these countries are navigating the tariff landscape and the strategic decisions being made to stay competitive.

About Futuresource Consulting

For over 35 years, Futuresource Consulting has been empowering brands with unrivalled data, consumer insights, and industry expertise. Our mission is to provide actionable insights that enable our clients to lead the charge on market share, diversification, innovation, and customer experience.

To download the full report, which give access to the recordings please visit please visit our website.  Analysts are available for comment.

PRESS CONTACT:

Nicola Finn

Marketing Manager Futuresource Consulting
Email: nicola.finn@Futuresource-hq.com
Website: https://www.futuresource-consulting.com

About the author

Ted Romanowitz

Ted Romanowitz is a visionary product leader spearheading industry transitions in the Semiconductor, Consumer Electronics, Networking and Professional Audio Visual industries.  He held increasingly responsible marketing roles at Intel Corporation over his twelve year tenure, helping drive the highly successful Centrino Mobile Technology launch and Gigabit Ethernet market transition as well as owning the global consumer processor and chipset roadmap.  

Romanowitz begin in the Pro AV industry in the 1990s expanding the Vivatek brand for Delta Products and has spent the past decade focused on LED product management with Industry leaders Leyard/Planar and Christie Digital Systems. Currently an independent Consultant and Contributing Assistant Professor at Willamette University's Atkinson Graduate School of Management, Ted lectures, writes and consults in the areas of new product planning, go-to-market strategy, product and sales management.  

In August 2021, he co-authored a comprehensive industry report on MicroLED display technology focused on the Pro AV and Consumer Electronics industries.  

About the author

Simon Forrest

As Principal Technology Analyst for Futuresource Consulting, Simon is responsible for identifying and reporting on transformational technologies that have propensity to influence and disrupt market dynamics. A graduate in Computer Science from the University of York, his expertise extends across broadcast television and audio, digital radio, smart home, broadband, Wi-Fi and cellular communication technologies.

He has represented companies across standards groups, including the Audio Engineering Society, DLNA, WorldDAB digital radio, the Digital TV Group (DTG) and Home Gateway Initiative.

Prior to joining Futuresource, Simon held the position of Director of Segment Marketing at Imagination Technologies, promoting development in wireless home audio semiconductors, and Chief Technologist within Pace plc (now Commscope) responsible for technological advancement within the Pay TV industry.